How to Clean Your Heat Exchangers – Checklists

We’re continuing our series this week on cleaning boilers and heat exchangers. This second post discusses cleaning heat exchangers, including the tools/products you need to do the job. Check out these resources before cleaning heat exchangers.

Resource 1: How To Clean Scale From Brazed Plate Heat Exchangers
Resource 2: How To Clean Scale From a Tube Heat Exchanger
Resource 3: Cleaning Tubes in Boilers, Chillers & Heat Exchangers

Here’s more about this week’s topic – cleaning heat exchangers:

Clean heat exchangers equate to tremendous energy savings, according to the U. S. Department of Energy. Scale deposits from magnesium, calcium, and silica (from the water supply) form a layer on heat exchangers. Layers of deposits insulate the exchangers and slow down heat transfer, causing the exchangers to overheat or fail, reducing energy efficiency and causing more wear and tear on the system.

The Northwest Food Processors Association identifies soot as another cause of deposit build-up. Fuel oil combustion deposits and coal or wood waste can melt onto heat transfer surfaces. Once these deposits have melted, they can form a glass-like insulating layer that’s difficult to remove.

The association recommends reducing fuel costs by regularly cleaning heat exchangers to prevent fouling, which is often caused by a dirty, malfunctioning burner. Inspect heat exchangers at least once yearly and clean them when they look dirty.

Inefficient heat exchange is caused by scale and sediment buildup. A heat exchanger tube cleaner from Goodway can quickly eliminate the problem. Goodway offers a variety of tools to remove scale and other types of build-up so your heat exchanger can operate at an optimal level.

Our step-by-step cleaning guides offer detailed information using chemical or manual cleaning systems to remove dirt and debris and scale, form heat exchangers.

Resource 1: How To Clean Scale From Brazed Plate Heat Exchangers
Resource 2: How To Clean Scale From a Tube Heat Exchanger
Resource 3: Cleaning Tubes in Boilers, Chillers & Heat Exchangers

Use a biodegradable liquid descaler to loosen and remove tough deposits while keeping the environment safe. A portable video scope that’s built for industrial use identifies deposits for a thorough inspection. Using a descaler system circulates the descaling fluid through the unit automatically. The scale is gone when the pH of the solution rises, or the fluid stops foaming.

Next Steps:

4 comments


  • I like the savings clean heat exchangers produce!

    December 10, 2012
  • This is a good guide. Thanks for this information.

    February 18, 2013
  • A clean heat exchanger will provide optimal efficieny and increase the lifetime. Blocked tubes on a shell and tube heat exchanger will lead to a drop in performance and an increase in pressure loss.

    February 19, 2013
  • I have been trying to download the list and how to clean coils. I have found some very good products that I think will work great but I still have questions.

    August 25, 2014

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